Actuating pedals of this class described in the introduction have been used in utility vehicles and motor vehicles for a long time. The actuating pedals have to meet high requirements concerning strength and the rigidity of the connection, and it should be borne in mind that extremely high forces are applied to the actuating pedal especially in panic or full braking situations.
In addition, high torsional rigidity is also desirable and necessary because a direct, good feeling of braking shall be provided at any time for the driver of the vehicle during the application of the actuating pedal.
Based on these requirements, all the actuating pedals used at present are made of steel without exception. Such a component is usually manufactured from a steel sheet, and the entire manufacturing process comprises a plurality of shaping processes and additional components, e.g., for mounting restoring springs or for actuating limit switches, are welded to the pedal body as a basic sheet metal part. The number of individual processing steps makes the production of actuating pedals of this class particularly expensive compared with other vehicle components despite automation engineering, because a final surface treatment in the form of a paint coating is usually additionally performed after the end of the shaping operation proper. In addition, the actuating pedals used in the prior art have the serious drawback that they have a relatively heavy weight because of their design, which may have a disadvantageous effect especially in case of an accident.